Schools of the Past

Many Washington County schools were loosely organized in the 1850s. The district school system was started in 1850. A re-organization in 1864 set up the county school system that existed for about 90 years. The 76th school district was formed in 1902. By 1909, two districts had already closed their schools and were busing their students to schools in Hastings. The consolidation of rural schools continued until the county system was discontinued in the 1950s.

WCHS is looking for dates and other facts about each of the schools that existed in the county. We hope to add the names of teachers and fill out the histories on each of the buildings. If you have information or stories about any of the schools, please contact us.

This page is dedicated to the memory of Edward E. Bloomquist (1882-1935), a county school superintendent for 17 years as well as the first president of the Washington County Historical Society.